000			01607nam a22001457a 4500
999			_c516252 _d516252
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100			_aUbels, Hiska et al _924290
245			_aNon‐engagement of mid‐aged and elderly residents in rural civic livability initiatives
260			_aRural Sociology
300			_a85(3), Sep, 2020: p.730-756
520			_aIn the context of public budget cuts and rural areas facing depopulation and aging, local governments increasingly encourage citizen engagement in addressing local livability issues. This paper examines the non‐engagement of mid‐aged and elderly residents (45+ years old) in civic initiatives that intend to improve the livability of their community. We focus on residents of depopulating rural areas in the North Netherlands. We compare their engagement with the behavior of residents in other, not depopulating, rural areas, and urban areas. Using logistic statistical analyses, we found that the majority of the aging residents did not engage in civic livability initiatives during the past two years, and one‐third of this group had no intention to do so in the future. In all areas, the main reasons for non‐engagement were that residents had other priorities, felt not capable of engaging, or felt that the responsibility for local livability belonged to the local government. Furthermore, it appeared that non‐engagement was predominantly explained by the unwillingness to engage, rather than by specific motivations or lacking abilities. - Reproduced
773			_aRural Sociology
906			_aRURAL DEVELOPMENT
942			_cAR